Planned tribute set to honor HMS Bounty, those who perished in Sandy

A tribute is in the works to celebrate the time the HMS Bounty was Fall River’s own.

This week, the city received the sad news the tall ship perished Monday in Hurricane Sandy off the coast of North Carolina. One crew member lost her life, and a search continues for the boat's missing captain.

A tribute is in the works to celebrate the time the HMS Bounty was Fall River’s own.

This week, the city received the sad news the tall ship perished Monday in Hurricane Sandy off the coast of North Carolina. One crew member lost her life, and a search continues for the boat's missing captain.

Fall River was the Bounty’s home port from 1993 until 2001.

“For people involved with the Bounty, it was an important part of their lives," said Tom Murray, former president of the Fall River Chamber Foundation, the organization that brought the Bounty to Fall River. "It was something positive in the city. For the most part, people were very proud of the ship."

Murray said the tribute is tentatively planned for Dec. 1 at the Fall River Marine Museum. A large model of the Bounty donated by media mogul Ted Turner is part of the museum’s collection.

The plan includes a procession of former crew members and volunteers — and others who want to participate — to Battleship Cove to lay a wreath. The procession will then head to the dock at Heritage State Park to raise another wreath at the location where the Bounty was berthed.

Marine museum director the Rev. Robert Lawrence will offer a benediction, and Murray said he will offer a eulogy to the Bounty and the lost crew members.

After the procession, Murray said participants will be invited to return to the Marine Museum for a period of fellowship.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard searched for Capt. Robin Walbridge for a third day. Walbridge was wearing a survival suit when he disappeared into the churning waters about 90 miles off North Carolina's Outer Banks.

Crew member Claudene Christian, 42, also disappeared, and her body was recovered Monday night.

Walbridge has captained the Bounty for the past 17 years, after the chamber foundation hired him in 1995. Walbridge trained dozens of youth and adults to sail the tall ship and organized a number of sail-training programs for youth.

After financial troubles left the ship in disrepair, the chamber foundation sold the ship in 2001.

Walbridge followed the ship and helped oversee a renovation of more than $1.5 million.

The loss of the Bounty and crew has had a deep impact on many people who were involved with the ship, especially the people involved in its sailing programs.

“The ship had an important impact on their lives," Lawrence said. "They’re deeply saddened, and they want to be a part of this. That’s why we need to plan this right."

The effect the Bounty had on Fall River was “huge,” Murray said, noting it was an ambassador for the city as it traveled up and down the coast, the Great Lakes and numerous tall-ship events.

Page 2 of 2 - Anyone who would like more information or to participate in the tribute to the Bounty and its crew, can contact Tom Murray at 508-679-3188 or TheMurraysToo@comcast.net.